YouTube for Android code hints background audio to come

Listen up audio junkies and those who use YouTube to stream all of your music: the YouTube for Android app may soon be gaining much need functionality.

An APK teardown of YouTube for Android software reveals Google is set to incorporate background audio into the app. This feature will allow users to start a video, exit the YouTube app, and switch to another app without the music stopping. Furthermore, the feature is believed to work with a device's screen turned off.

The feature isn't immediately available in the latest YouTube version, but Android Police was able to perform a bit of code manipulating to get the UI to appear. "Continuing playing audio when the app is running in the background or the screen is switched off," the software notes. Google has yet to confirm the feature is coming, but it's looking likely.

YouTube has become one of the go-to ways for users to stream audio while on the go, for free with the inclusions of advertisements every so often. Background audio streaming has been one of the most requested features for the YouTube app for quite sometime, so it would be quite a milestone.